School me on using an FX loop.....

[rlord1974]

Might seem like a silly question but, oh well.....

I have never been one to use an FX loop. The few pedals I use live have always been run in series between my guitar output and amp input. Currently, I am using:

* Korg Pitchblack Tuner
* Xotic BB+ Preamp Boost/OD
* Boss DD3 Digital Delay
* Diamond Tremolo
* Dunlop Wah

I am thinking of dumping the Boss DD3 and getting either a Diamond Memory Lane Jr. or T-Rex Reptile 2 (need a delay with tap tempo and modulation). I'm also thinking of picking up a reverb pedal; probably either a TC Hall of Fame or a SolidGoldFX Surf Rider.

With my new lineup of pedals, I am thinking it might make sense to change my old approach and run them as follows:

Guitar --> Xotic BB+ Preamp --> Dunlop Wah --> Korg Pitchblack Tuner --> Amp Input

Then, run the rest as follows:

FX Loop Send --> Delay --> Reverb --> Diamond Tremolo --> FX Loop Return

In theory it sounds great, but I am concerned about signal loss. You know, Mama always said minimize cable runs to maximize tone. Well, if I am running 25 feet of cable from my pedalboard to my amp, that means:

1.) 20 feet of cable from guitar to pedalboard
2.) 25 feet of cable from my pedalboard to my Amp Input
3.) 25 feet of cable from my FX Loop Send to my pedalboard
4.) 25 feet of cable from my pedalboard to my FX Loop Return

Ignoring the additional cable runs ON my pedalboard, the above 4 add to, well, a shitload of cable (95 feet)!

Can I expect a lot of signal loss as a result of running the additional 50 feet of cable to and from my pedalboard in order to use my amp's FX Loop?

Oh, and FWIW, I plan on using my amp's SERIES loop, not the parallel loop.

Your thoughts are appreciated!

Thx!

 

[kiff]

I would put the wah before the bb+, especially if you plan to get any OD from it

as far as cable lengths, you should be ok since you're not running passive pup's straight to the amp, but instead your pedals have buffers. pretty much the same thing for the loop

 

[racerevlon]

Why not put all the pedals in a small rack by your amp and get a GCX or RJM--some kind of loop switcher--minimize cable runs and leverage MIDI to control the whole shootin' match?

 

[rlord1974]

I hear you. However, I bounce between a head setup and a rack setup and want a solution I deem "workable" regardless of which rig I'm using. I don't want to start a whole new rack simply for FX. Plus, the fact of the matter is, I rarely use anything other than the Xotic BB+ and the Wah, so I don't really need to invest that kind of money in a midi-controlled FX solution. Just want to keep it "meat and potatoes" at present, if you know what I mean...

Also, I couldn't use the tap tempo feature on the Diamond Tremolo and delay pedal if they're stuck behind me in a rack.....

 

[roodboy]

The thing to be aware of even more than cable length is effects loop send/receive level. A lot of amps have line level send level which may overload input level of a intrument level pedal.
What amp are you running?

 

[mrkmas]

You can try using the loop, and with all of the pedals turned off, turn on the loop and see what happends. If its a huge difference in volume then you can adjust the loop levels if the amp has them, or run a buffer pedal of some sort to help you.

 

[supersonic]

Run the tuner in the loop, no tone loss that way. I can't hear any tone loss running long leads from the loop to my pedalboard.

 

[Fallout Labs]

guitar - tuner - wah - preamp - AMP

in fx loop:

trem - delay - reverb..

ideally you'd want to run the delay & reverb in parallel, but if you're not using them constantly at the same time, its not a huge deal.

as far as cable lengths, 95 feet is nothing. you need a goof buffer early on to get the signal straight.
someone posted about pedals having buffers.. well if they're true-bypass, they aren't buffered..
i wouldn't run the tuner in the loop.. that doesn't make sense to me.. why feed a tuner a distorted signal?

anyway, rob, shoot me a PM about getting this board wired up!

Casey